


come here, let me fix it

by em_writes_imagines



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Gender-Neutral Pronouns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-23
Updated: 2020-06-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:08:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24882085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/em_writes_imagines/pseuds/em_writes_imagines
Summary: “No, I didn’t mean— it’s just—” Zuko turns toward you again, “that’s not… how you wear that.”“Well, how was I supposed to know? It’s not like I grew up wearing these dumb things.” You pull the ornament out of your hair once more, tempted to throw it to the ground.“Here, just— come here, let me fix it.”
Relationships: Zuko (Avatar) & Reader, Zuko (Avatar)/Reader
Comments: 6
Kudos: 373





	come here, let me fix it

**Author's Note:**

> feel free to send in requests @/em-writes-imagines on tumblr!!

“ _Damn it,_ ” you mutter as your hair slips out of the pin again, falling around your face and obscuring your reflection in the water. “Stupid Fire Nation and their stupid clothes, stupid hairpin, stupid…”

After multiple attempts and several minutes of leaning over the fountain to check your appearance, you manage to style your hair into something that at least stays _still_ without falling apart every two seconds… you stare at your reflection a moment longer before sighing and pulling away. _Good enough._

As you turn around, though, a laugh cuts across the courtyard, and your eyes snap toward the sound. 

Zuko meets your gaze, eyes wide before he quickly covers his mouth and tries to play it off as a cough, looking anywhere but your direction.

“Ooooh, someone’s in _trouble_ ,” Sokka calls out from where he’s sitting with Toph, the two of them laughing as your jaw clenches.

“No, I didn’t mean— it’s just—” Zuko turns toward you again, “that’s not… how you wear that.” While there’s a hesitance to his tone, his eyes carry both apology and amusement, causing warmth to rush to your cheeks as you try to ignore your overwhelming desire to sink into the floor.

“Well, how was I supposed to know? It’s not like I grew up wearing these dumb things.” You pull the ornament out of your hair once more, tempted to throw it to the ground.

“Here, just— **come here, let me fix it** _._ ”

Every muscle in your body freezes, and you’re not sure why. You don’t know why your cheeks are still flushed, or why the idea of letting him do your hair fills you with… fear? Curiosity? You shake off whatever it is before your hesitation becomes too obvious, letting out a huff as you walk toward the rock Zuko’s sitting on.

You settle on the ground in front of him, and he holds his palm out beside you. You look down at it for a moment, and when you don’t move to do anything, he says, “Your hairpin.”

“Oh.” A new wave of embarrassment washes through you, but thankfully he can’t see the blush on your face as you place the comb and hairpin in his hand.

While you can tell he’s making sure to keep his legs from touching you, they’re close enough that you find yourself acutely aware of your own stillness. Toph and Sokka’s conversation sounds a lot quieter from this side of the courtyard, and with them no longer paying attention to you, the atmosphere feels… thick, with something you can’t name.

“You were using this part of your hair,” Zuko taps near the back of your head, then moves his hand higher, “when you should’ve been closer to here.”

“Oh.”

He begins combing through the tangles you created when you pulled the hairpin out, admittedly faster than you should have. “You don’t have to be embarrassed about it.” The words come out rushed, as if he’s not sure of them, or he’s worried he’ll back out. “I… I only laughed because, well, I grew up around this.” He uses the comb to section off parts of your hair, then picks up the pin.

As he pulls your hair back, Zuko explains, “The point is to have the symbol of the Fire Nation visible, it’s a sign of… pride.”

There’s something distracting about the feeling as he fixes your hair, but you do your best to focus. “I guess that makes sense. Back in my village, national pride wasn’t high on the list of priorities, so it just seems… weirdly prevalent here.”

Zuko is quiet for a moment before replying, “From a young age, we’re taught that the Fire Nation is this great, all-powerful entity, that we should be thankful to have been born into it, that we owe our lives to it. They give you all these ideas of grandiosity, divine right, self-importance; it’s taken me far too long to see through those lies.”

“I can imagine. All the Fire Nation cities we’ve travelled through… they’re overflowing with propaganda. It’s on every poster, in every street performance, even in the markets; not to mention the stories Aang told us when he attended one of their schools.”

“Why would Aang attend… he was wearing a student uniform.” You can hear Zuko shaking his head.

“Katara and Sokka _flipped_ when they found out.”

“The _Avatar_ , walking into a _Fire Nation academy_ … why am I not surprised?”

“As dangerous as it was, we _did_ get some information out of it, including our map.”

“Things seem to have a way of working out for Aang,” Zuko comments, and you realize in that moment that it’s been some time since he finished fixing your hair.

And here you are, still sitting between his legs.

“Yep, they sure do, huh?” You hop to your feet, immediately putting some space between the two of you. 

Zuko seems startled by the sudden action, and you’re sure the shift in your demeanor doesn’t help his confusion; you just don’t know what else to do.

“Thanks for the help with this thing,” you point to your hairpin, already backing away. “I’ve gotta head into town to pick up some supplies, so…”

You turn to make your way towards Appa but stop after a few steps, turning around again. “Do you wanna come with me? I mean, so we can carry more supplies back, you know?”

Zuko smiles the slightest bit, and you have a feeling he sees right through your rushed explanation as he replies, “Sure.”


End file.
